It is that time of year when our thoughts are turning to gratitude and reflection and stock-taking as we celebrate Thanksgiving (or Friendsgiving), begin to prepare for the holidays, and steel ourselves to cope with the cold and dark.  We reflect on the year that has past and begin to plan how we’d like to change and grow in the coming New Year.

It is impossible not to also reflect on the contentious landscape of American politics and the coarsening of public discourse, especially so, I believe, if you care about language and its many applications.  Engaging in our moment meaningfully seems to demand a tireless voice more than ever before.

While reflecting on the nature of Frequency’s work, my first thought was that Frequency’s work centers on speaking out, finding our voices, and raising them up. In a time of polarized shouting and questionable rhetoric, the power of the whisper, of forcing the listener to lean in seems equally vital though.  Silence can also be used as an effective tool of protest and strikes me as a primary state for a writer to exist in.  Frequency Writers’ ultimate aim is to reach writers where they are at and honor all the stages of writing—the voice raised in praise or dissent, the considered whisper which urges the listener toward deeper attention, and the silent work of drafting and scribbling.

I believe these ways of being in and writing about our world and time have intrinsic value and deserve stewardship.  It feels like a vulnerable time to care about the craft of writing; a craft which we often fit in around those things we depend on for a living.  We know that as a member of the Frequency community you do care, which is why we are asking for your support now.  Your donations go to providing scholarships to everyone who asks, help us supplement sliding scale classes, provide travel stipends to instructors if needed, pay our support staff, produce our annual anthology, and generally keep Frequency afloat.  In making a gift today, you are helping your fellow writers’ voices to be nurtured, heard, and sustained.

Thank you,
Rosalynde Vas Dias
Artistic Director